Q&A: Canadian University Games team track coach Wes Moerman

On June 29, Wes Moerman was at Foote Field proudly watching the Edmonton International Track Classic become a huge success with a record crowd and world-class performances.

Moerman, the director of the University of Alberta Cross Country and Track and Field teams, had played a significant role organizing the annual athletics meet.

Shortly after, Moerman was off to Kazan, Russia, for Universiade 2013. He is serving as a coach with the Canadian Track and Field team during the World University Games, which run July 6 to 17.

Last week, on the eve of the Games, the Examiner caught up with Moerman to get his thoughts on Universiade and the Edmonton International Track Classic.

EE: Have you had the opportunity to meet people from other countries?

WM: I’ve spent most of my time out at the track, chatting with some of the other coaches from some of the other countries — Australia, Germany, and United States — there’s a good smattering of countries here and you just connect with whoever you can. It’s quite good, very stimulating.

EE: What are the Canadian track and field team’s goals at Universiade 2013?

WM: We certainly want to improve on our performance from the last (Universiade), but it’s very difficult to gauge where you’re at in track and field … it’s kind of like going on a blind date: You’re not sure what you’re going to get, but you know you’re going to get a good meal when you get the competition. It’s really hard to predict and have expectations of where (the athletes) will end up.

EE: What are you most looking forward to at Universiade?

WM: I’m really looking forward to the track. I’m kind of a track nut, so I’m just looking forward to the races and the competitions going off and rooting for the athletes to do well in front of the (world) of track and field.

EE: What is your daily itinerary?

WM: Once the competition gets going, it’s up early, breakfast probably at 6 or 6:30, and then off to the track to help people prepare for their morning session. Then maybe a little bit of, I won’t say downtime, but we’ll look at getting the evening session prepared, and then at the end of the evening session come home and make sure the next group is ready to go. So it is probably 14- to 16-hour days, but very few people get that privilege, so we’re excited to have that privilege.

EE: What is your assessment of the 2013 Edmonton International Track Classic?

WM: I think it went fantastic. The reviews from the athletes that were competing were great, I thought our depth of fields were great, I thought our exposure was high: You get a lot of people talking about track and field, which in our city doesn’t end up happening a lot of times, and the athletes that live around or reside in Edmonton were definitely inspired, and I know many University of Alberta athletes … were truly inspired by it. It’s fantastic in terms of the impact on multiple levels. We all remember being Wayne Gretzky in the driveway scoring goals, and I think we’re creating opportunities where people can be inspired by some of the best track and field athletes.